New Delhi: The Central government is mulling extending the nationwide lockdown beyond April 14 to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic following requests from several states and experts, government sources said Tuesday.
However, sources did not indicate if a final decision has been taken on the matter, and Joint Secretary in the Union Health Ministry Lav Aggarwal said, “no decision on extending lockdown as yet been (taken), please don’t speculate.”
India is currently under the 21-day lockdown since March 25, with only essential services exempted, to contain the fast-spreading virus, which has claimed more than 75,800 lives globally and afflicted over 13.5 lakh people across 183 countries.
“A lot of state governments as well as experts are requesting the Central Government to extend the lockdown. The Central government is thinking in this direction,” a source said, a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked countrymen to be ready for a long battle against the COVID-19 pandemic and exhorted people to not feel tired or defeated while expressing confidence that India will emerge victorious in the fight.
Chairing a meeting of the Council of Ministers through video conferencing Monday, Modi had clearly indicated that the lifting of the lockdown in one go is very unlikely while discussing the modalities of lifting it.
The Prime Minister also asked the ministers whether the restrictions should be lifted sector-wise or district-wise, a source said. Reiterating that lockdown measures and social distancing norms need to go hand in hand, Modi also told ministers to popularise the ‘Aarogya Setu’ app in the rural areas and grass root institutions.
Several chief ministers have favoured the extension of the lockdown to contain the fast-spreading virus, as the number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 4,421 and death toll touched 117.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said his government will extend lockdown if need arises, while his counterpart in Rajasthan Ashok Gehlot said the state cannot withdraw the lockdown immediately, and it has to be done in a phased manner.
In a statement to mark two weeks of lockdown, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu said the next one week of the lockdown is ‘critical’ for evolving an exit strategy as the data regarding the spread of coronavirus will have a bearing on the decision to be taken by the government.
Since there is no vaccine to fight COVID-19, the government has stressed that social distancing is the only way to check the spread of the virus. Lockdown is considered the best way to keep people indoors.
Inter-state travel by public transport, including trains and buses, is banned, and so is domestic and international air travel.
PTI
